


Masquerade

by jedicastaway



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-25
Updated: 2017-06-25
Packaged: 2018-11-18 21:03:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11298807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jedicastaway/pseuds/jedicastaway
Summary: Riverdale hosts a masquerade ball and the two most unlikely people end up spending the night together.





	Masquerade

**Author's Note:**

> I originally posted this on my Tumblr supersleuthjughead but decided to head on and post it over here too! It's actually one of my favourite pairings and I aim to write more so enjoy!

Riverdale - the once innocent town now shrouded in deceit and mystery - was no longer a safe haven for those living there. People were constantly paranoid, waiting for the next disaster to happen. After the murder of Jason Blossom and the reveal that his own father had killed him, everyone was on edge. If someone’s own father could turn on their son like that who could anyone trust? People who were once friendly to each other were now cautious of who they spoke to, cautious of where they went and the things they did. Riverdale seemed to have this dark cloud hanging above it lately, one that it couldn’t get rid of.  
  
So, Mayor McCoy decided the town was in a desperate need of a distraction. People needed to their minds off all the trouble so she got to work planning and thinking of ideas until she came up with something. The town was no stranger to hosting events every now and again but they’d never really had something quite as big as this happening.  
  
A masquerade ball. One night where people could dress up, hide their identity and just let go and forget about what was going on in their little town.

  
  
The posters were up, a buzz had circulated around the whole town and for once in a long time people were actually excited. The local mall was abuzz with everyone finding their perfect outfits, others more concerned about finding a date than what they were going to wear. Of course, there were those people who weren’t interested at all and those that acted like they weren’t interested but actually were.  
  
Like Jughead Jones.  
  
On the outside he was this mysterious, sarcastic loner kid who had often made it pretty known he didn’t like social situations but on the inside he was still just a kid. He wanted to go to the dances, he wanted to hang out with his friends but he just didn’t know how to handle himself in those kind of situations. Besides, by now, all of his friends had dates to go with. Archie was taking his girlfriend Veronica and Betty had been very sweetly asked by Trev so that left Jughead all alone. He’d told them all he probably wasn’t going to bother going but like always they just wouldn’t take no for an answer.  
  
“So, what’re you going to do, Jug? Just sit in your dad’s trailer all night all alone?” Archie questioned as they strolled through the mall in search of a suit and mask for the red headed boy.  
  
Jughead shrugged his shoulders. “I need to find something else to write about since the whole Jason thing is done with now so yeah.”  
  
“Dude, no,” Archie sighed, stepping into a store with Jughead following closely behind. “I’m not letting that happen. You have to come.”  
  
“And be the fifth wheel? Yeah sure, Archie. Let me just rush to jump at this amazing offer,” he rolled his eyes as he dodged his way past a crowd of people who were incredibly invested in some bow ties.  
  
“Dude, please? We all want you to come. I’m not going to stop until you agree to come with us all,” Archie said and stopped as he approached a black tux that just screamed Archie Andrews.  
  
Jughead sighed, hands in his jacket pocket as he eyed the suits in front of him. The dance was tomorrow and in true Archie fashion, he’d left it until last minute. He actually didn’t even realise the dance was tomorrow until Veronica asked him what colour he was wearing causing the red haired boy to call Jughead and drag him out shopping. Maybe going wouldn’t be so bad even if he did have to wear a suit. “Fine,” he gave in. “Count me in but I’m leaving whenever I want to and none of you can stop me.”  
  
“Fine by me!” Archie beamed as he pulled two suits down, thrusting one at Jughead to try on.

* * *

The dance was in full swing. Everyone in fancy suits, extravagant dresses but most importantly a ridiculous array of masks to cover their face in true masquerade style. The hall was full of people, the music blasting out through speakers scattered around the room. The dance floor was full of people young and old trying to show off their best dance moves. It was a nice, fun atmosphere - completely different to the past few weeks. There wasn’t a single person who wasn’t enjoying themselves for once.  
  
Even Jughead was having a good time. Well, as good as a time he could have. Archie and Veronica were off dancing, Betty and Trev were off getting punch and he was sat on one of the tables all by himself. His head rested in his hand as he watched everyone having a good time with their dates. It was the rare times like this where he wished he wasn’t such a loner. Having a date, someone to share this night with might have made it that much better.  
  
“Come on, Juggie. Smile!” Betty sat down beside him with a big smile on her face.  
  
“Here,” he put on the biggest fake smile he could causing the blonde to roll her eyes.  
  
“Not good enough! Go out there and have a good time. You don’t have your hat on, your face is covered so it’s not like anyone knows who you are so your reputation won’t be ruined,” she laughed.  
  
He shrugged. “I don’t know. I might just go home. I’ve had a good time and staying longer will ruin that probably.”  
  
“Jug, nobody know it’s you. This is a chance to be someone else - someone new for one night. You can forget all your worries and trouble and go be a normal teenager, be the person you’d love to be,” Betty spoke, giving his shoulder a quick squeeze before she ran back over to Trev.  
  
Betty was right. This was a night where he could let go of the normal Jughead and live a little. Nobody knew it was him, he could take on any personality and act how he wanted. But, he was Jughead. He couldn’t act like an entirely different person - he liked staying true to himself so he decided the only thing he’d change was his confidence. He’d go maybe interact with people, maybe give people a chance for this one night. Nobody would be able to recall it tomorrow especially because nobody had seen Jughead Jones without his ‘stupid’ hat on. What did he have to lose?  
  
What he didn’t know was that a certain red haired princess was in the same situation however unlike him, she didn’t have any friends to give her the push she needed. Cheryl Blossom didn’t need a push, though. She had willingly come to this dance by herself to have a good time and forget about the mess of her family, to forget about the fact everyone seemed to hate her. Who could blame them, though? She had been a straight up bitch to pretty much everyone. Not tonight, though. It was a night where she was going to be nice, she was going to let go and forget about every crappy thing that was going on in her life. So, with her hair pinned up in a beautiful bun, her long black dress flowing and the mask across her face hiding her true identity, she stood on the edge of the dancefloor. Her arms were crossed across her chest, eyes scanning the room trying to figure out who she could talk to or what she could do.  
  
That’s when their eyes connected.  
  
Jughead had got up from his seat moments after Betty had left. He wasn’t entirely sure what to do but with his un-Jughead like confidence, he’d figure something out. That was when his eyes met the most beautiful brown ones he’d ever seen. It took his breath back a little bit which was a strange, unusual thing for him. His feet carried him to the dancefloor, just like Cheryl’s did her - the two meeting in the middle.  
  
“Hey,” Jughead greeted.  
  
“Hey,” she smiled, wondering who she was talking to her. The voice seemed familiar but she couldn’t quite place it. Not that she cared anyway.  
  
The two stood there smiling at each other unaware of who they were truly talking to. In their normal everyday life, the two mismatched people would never be seen talking to each other unless it was to throw an insult or snarky remark at each other. They didn’t realise it though, but they were so alike in some ways. Broken families, loneliness - two sides of the same coin. If both of them weren’t so stubborn normally, they’d probably end up the best of friends.  
  
“So, you want to dance?” Jughead asked, holding out his hand for her to take. Without hesitation, she took it and allowed him to steer them into a more open space on the floor. His hands soon moved to rest gently on her waist while hers locked around his neck, both of them swaying slowly to the song that was playing.  
  
Shy looks and smiles were shared while the two danced, both of them feeling a connection like never before even though they’d barely talked to each other. His touch had sent electricity through Cheryl’s veins. It was a sensation like no other to her.  
  
“So, why are you here alone?” Jughead asked her curiously. Why was a beautiful girl like her at this dance all by herself?  
  
“I don’t have many friends. I’m kind of a loner,” she chuckled, shrugging her shoulders briefly.  
  
“Me too.”  
  
After that, the red haired girl and the usually beanie wearing boy spent the night practically by each other’s side. They chatted without giving too much away about who they were, got drinks and danced. It was simply a matter of just enjoying each other’s company, both of them feeling the happiest they had in a long time. None of this has gone unnoticed by Archie and the gang who had tried to ask him about the mystery girl for the one brief moment she’d gone to the bathroom but he brushed them off. He didn’t want them to ruin this for him.

Currently, the couple were sat at a table just chatting and having a drink. The dance was dying down by now. Most people were heading home but Jughead and Cheryl wanted to spend as much time with each other as they possibly could. Since it was getting so late and they’d have to part ways soon, the question of asking who each other were played on their minds but did they want it to possibly ruin the night if they found out each other’s true identity? Or did they just want to remember this one night and carry on not knowing?

Cheryl was about to open her mouth to ask when Archie came over, placing a hand on Jughead’s shoulder. “Hey, we should get going!”

Sighing, Jughead stood up. “I have to go but…”

“I’m going to figure out who you are,” Cheryl said, determined. Seeing Archie come over to approach her date for the night had peaked her curiosity but Archie was friends with a lot of people so she couldn’t jump to too many conclusions. “And when I do, you better be ready for it.”

All Jughead could do was chuckle, leaning over and pressing a lingering kiss to her cheek. “I look forward to it.”

And with that, their magical night came to an end.

* * *

“Jug, are you listening to me?” Archie asked as they sat in the student lounge, briefly putting a stop to his candy bar eating to tell Jughead the story of how Cheryl was on a mission to find her date from the masquerade ball but the beanie-clad boy wasn’t listening. He was in a world of his own. Besides, the moment he’d mentioned the name Cheryl, Jughead didn’t care.

“Nope,” he grinned, folding his arms across his chest. Truth be told, he was thinking about the girl he was hanging out with that night.

“Maybe she’s the girl who you were hanging out with last night,” Archie suggested. Jughead only shook his head at the ridiculous idea. The person Jughead had spent his night with had been funny, sweet and he’d enjoyed talking to her more than anyone else he’d ever met. Cheryl was the opposite of all those things.

“You’re talking crazy so I’m going,” he got up, heading out of the student lounge and into the busy hallways of the school. His hands were stuffed into his jeans pocket, a sigh passing his lips as he thought about _his_ girl. His biggest regret that night was not asking who she was. Why did he have to be an idiot and want to leave it as just one night? One person had never made him so happy before. He couldn’t get the moment they’d first locked eyes out of his head. How beautiful hers were and how he could stare at them all day and never get tired.

One of the jocks barged past Jughead, knocking his shoulder causing him to look up and glare. As he turned his head back around to see if he was heading towards the cafeteria, his eyes locked with the pair of familiar brown ones he was infatuated with.

“…no way,” he muttered to himself in disbelief as he realised they belonged to Cheryl Blossom - the last person he’d ever expect. He began walking towards her as she did him, the two meeting in the middle of the hallway.

“…you?” She asked. Her voice wasn’t harsh like normal, it was soft. Soft and relieved. It kind of made his heart do a little flip.

“I thought you were going to find me not the other way around,” he quipped, easily falling back into the easy conversation they’d had a few nights ago.

“Oh, shut up,” she rolled her eyes, a smile on her face. To anyone watching the two, they’d probably think the world was ending seeing Jughead Jones and Cheryl Blossom having a normal conversation. Even Jughead and Cheryl thought it was weird but the connection they’d had that night was there. It didn’t matter who they were, they wanted that connection. They wanted to grasp onto the happiness of that night and hold onto it for as long as they could.

“You gonna make me?” He challenged, raising an eyebrow.

She took a step forward, placing her hand on his cheek and softly kissing his lips. The fireworks were immeasurable, the excitement was indescribable and for once, just once it seemed like there was a little bit of hope in their messed up worlds.


End file.
